Retail Roundup: Carriage Hills Area Shopping, Dining and Entertainment

The Carriage Hills area offers an impressive variety of exciting new restaurants. Foodies from all over town rave about local restaurant Soto, one of the finest Japanese restaurants in Austin. Run by Andy Okamoto, a critically acclaimed chef who trained in Japan for years, Soto offers unique Japanese dishes with a modern twist, such as the tender Kobe beef carpaccio, featuring thin slices of tender raw beef served with flavorful fried shallots and crispy jalapeño chips.

For a local flavor, Smokey Mo’s is also very close to the neighborhood. A traditional family-style barbecue place, Smokey Mo’s serves Texas comfort food classics like moist and tender slow-smoked brisket, hot sausages, and ribs. With generous sides, a warm, lively atmosphere, and extremely friendly staff, it’s a great place for family and friends to gather.

Convenient and Abundant Shopping Nearby

For groceries and everyday needs, Walmart Super Center is situated just to the east of the neighborhood. For more extensive shopping, the 1890 Ranch shopping center is less than a 5-minute drive from Carriage Hills and offers more than 70 stores and restaurants and is a popular choice for shopping or a night out.

Some of the most notable retailers include SuperTarget, Bealls, Academy Sports and Outdoors, Famous Footwear, Natural Grocers, PetSmart, Office Max, Ross Dress for Less, Bikram Yoga, Claire’s Boutique, Hemispheres, Mardel’s and Hobby Lobby.

Local parents often drop off the kids at the mall to have fun at Adventure Kids Playcare and then enjoy a movie at the Cinemark Movie Theater, followed by a family dinner at one of the several locally owned or popular restaurants such as Buffalo Wild Wings, Longhorn Steakhouse, Which Wich sandwich shop, Naanful Indian Grill, Mighty Fine Burgers, Takara Sushi or Rosie’s Pho Asian Noodles. For dessert, there are plenty of choices to satisfy even the most demanding sweet tooth at Baskin-Robbins, YoYo’s Frozen Yogurt, Nothing Bundt Cake or Gigi’s Cupcakes.

More Stores, Movies, and an 8,000 Seat Sports and Entertainment Arena

For a full day of shopping, Lakeline Mall, one of Austin’s biggest shopping destinations, is just 10-minutes away from Carriage Hills. With over 150 stores, shoppers enjoy a spacious mall including anchor stores Dillard’s and Macy’s. Teens are attracted to the extensive food court, movie theater and other retail shops like Hollister and Abercrombie & Fitch. Families appreciate the wide range of stores catering to children and children’s needs such as the Disney Store, Build-A-Bear Workshop, Rooms To Go Kids, and Inflatable Wonderland, a bounce house park.

One of the other major local attractions is the Cedar Park Center, the area’s premier stadium and entertainment center that seats up to 8,000 people and hosts more than 130 music, sports, and live events per year. In addition to hosting the Austin Toros basketball and Texas Stars hockey teams, the Center also stages many family events and even concerts by major touring acts.